Stay In The Game®

The mouthguard is a soft plastic device worn to prevent injuries to the teeth and mouth. Mouthguards are mandatory in full-contact sports such as football. However, participants in other sports should consider their use; an estimated 40% of oral injuries occur in baseball and basketball. Oral injuries range in severity from chipped teeth to broken jaws. 

Mouthguards are a misunderstood piece of protective equipment that players, their parents, and coaches alike, don’t always take seriously. However, mouthguards are essential for high impact sports, like football and hockey, and they are recommended by virtually every dental professional. But just what makes them necessary?

Your teeth are a vital part of who you are. They help you to be able to eat, drink, talk, and show off your beautiful smile. Thusly, it is important that you do everything in your power to protect your teeth and ensure their health. If you are actively involved in any number of sports, it is suggested (and may even be required) that you wear a mouth guard.

When it comes to dental injuries in sports, prevention can be the best medicine. More than 2.6 million children under the age of 19 are treated in emergency rooms each year for sports and recreation-related injuries, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Many of those injuries come from inadvertent blows to the face from balls, bats, hockey sticks and elbows. A mouth guard won’t stop that contact but it cushions the blows and redistributes the impact protecting teeth, tongue and gums when contact happens.

Mouth guards weren't invented just to annoy young athletes. Mouth guards are considered the best way to protect teeth. The National Youth Sports Foundation for Safety states that an athlete is 60 times more likely to sustain damage to teeth when not wearing a mouth guard.